Tim Nelson
Veteran
I had asked Roach to allow me to do the DL ramp campaign because I saw all the politics going on with NW and realized that they were going to get their arse handed to them again against a very formidable anti union company. Roach declined and went with someone with little to no education and O-fer on organizing. I then called him and asked him to allow me to put together a winning campaign for the CO stews. He said I was not a stew and it wouldn't work????? I told him point blank that his stews made $13,000 more per year than the AFA stews and the campaign was his too lose. He chose IL who is a nice guy but was like a 5th grader going up against a 12th garder in a backyard brawl. Closer to home, Roach informed me that he wanted to 'pull the plug' on airtran and have those 3,000 workers walk into a merger as mincemeat for the TWU and IAM. RD supported that and I was suppose to piss on the airtran folks. But they were messing with the wrong guy and publically, in LAS, I communicated with RD, RR, SP in the LAS casino in a way in which they trembled. That morning, Roach started his crap again [he just don't listen] in front of my airtran people. The thing he didn't realize is that I wasn't threatening him, I was being straight up with him, and he found out from my aritran folks and me in front of many of our members at the conventions that I didn't come to play and I came to win. I met with RD and told him I was going to 'crack his skull' metaphocially of course if he kept supporing the INTL screwing the airtran folks. I succeeded in fighting our own union and proceeding forward with an election that secured representation for those airtran folks at a time when they needed it most. Along the way, RD cut off some funds and wanted me to lose the campaign along with Roach, hedging a bet with DL 142. So with little funds, we still won since I had put together a solid team of our own members who stuck with the campaign.
Next up was UA ramp. Once again, Roach didn't want the District to do squat in the campaign and he wanted all the credit. While we didn't give a rip about credit, myself and DA knew that if we sided with RD and not the members, we would lose our union. IL, fresh off of his terrible beating with the CO stews, was assigned to head up the organizing efforts of the district for the UA ramp against the Teamsters. Once again, I had to become an #### and threaten our union in a way in which they had to back off. I don't like being an #### but RD didn't have the members back and for some reason feared Roach more than anyone else. When I was telling RD that the INTL would just screw this organizing drive all up by sh*tting folks, he told me, "If we buck Roach he will just split up the district and send us into trusteeship.". Well, the good thing was that Delaney was a complete and utter pushover so I just approached Roach myself through an email to one of his 'key persons' and let Roach know that if he even thinks for one minute that IL is going to run this district into the ground with a terrible organizing plan that will screw our members then there will be hell to pay 'in other ways'. Once again, I had to be a D*ck because Delaney had no balls whatsoever.
Then, and only then, we were able to kick the INTL out of many elements of the organizing drive and we became successful. DA also had to become a D*ck and make threats to secure the money needed to win. Even then, the Teamsters outspended us 10 to 1 but the Teamsters had their own problems that I knew my organizing plan could exploit.
One thing I have learned, whether it's negotiations or organizing, the INTL can and will F*uck things up. It's time that we have leadership that believes in District autonomy and doesn't yield to every damn thing the INTL says. Also, it's time that we actually have folks in leadership positions that have post graduate education. Can we exterminate the INTL? No but we can quit the 'code of silence' that the DL and INTL play to protect them and management and we can actually become transparent and release the masses. The INTL wants to corral the masses, put muzzles on them, and give them as little information as possible to keep them deaf, blind, dumb, and ignorant. We have to smash that down and it will have to start with sacrifice and trust. And it doesn't hurt to have some younger blood in there that isn't feeble and far removed from the ramp. Delaney has been off the ramp for 30 years and is closer to management than management. He's also the INTL incarnate in the District.
regards,
Tim Nelson
